Pentagon says no US military support for Turkey coup

People with Turkish flags gather at the 15 July martyrs square in Ankara, Turkey, on Friday, July 29, 2016. The government crackdown in the coup's aftermath has strained Turkey's ties with key allies including the United States. (AP Photo/Ali Unal)
(The Associated Press)

WASHINGTON – The Pentagon is flatly rejecting allegations by Turkey's president that the U.S. military was somehow involved in or in any way supported the recent failed coup in that country.

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan (REH'-jehp TY'-ihp UR'-doh-wahn) lashed out at the U.S. Friday and criticized a senior military commander who had expressed concerns that the coup could have longer-term impact on U.S. relations with the Turkish military. Erdogan says the U.S. was taking sides with coup plotters.

Pentagon press secretary Peter Cook says any suggestion that the U.S. supported the coup is absurd.

He says Defense Secretary Ash Carter received assurances from his Turkish counterpart that the fight against Islamic State militants won't be affected. The U.S. launches airstrikes, surveillance aircraft and other missions out of the Incirlik air base.